Pacers' Paul George: 'It will make me stronger'

Paul George of the Indiana Pacers describes his right leg injury he suffered on Aug. 1 during a USA Basketball scrimmage. He spoke on Friday, Aug. 15.
Clark Wade / The Star

Indiana Pacers forward Paul George fields questions from the media about his accident, recovery and his future with the Pacers during a press conference held at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Friday, August 15, 2014.(Photo: Matt Detrich/The Star)

Pacers All-Star forward Paul George arrived for his first press conference since breaking his leg in a USA Basketball scrimmage.

Other highlights of his comments:

George opened by thanking NBA fans, USA Basketball fans and "of course, Pacers fans. They've made it very easy to overcome this, because of their support."

On USA Basketball's role:

He thanked USA Basketball chairman Jerry Colangelo and coach Mike Krzyzewski, describing the injury as a freak accident. George said any criticism of USA Basketball is unfair. He would like to play in the 2016 Olympics.

On the injury:

"When I looked down and saw my bone sticking out, I knew it was bad. I've felt pain before. This was a pain I've never felt before.

"It felt like gasoline was on my leg and someone lit a match. Felt like my leg was in flames. It was a quick five minutes then my body went into shock."

What it's been like since the injury:

"It's been tough. I can't lie. As the weeks have gone on, it's gotten easier. I've been catching up on TV series, playing video games and enjoying my family.

"We have a great psychologist here. We discussed how to approach and attack this. I'm not looking at this as something negative for my career. I plan to make a full recovery."

George said he broke his leg in two places. There is a rod in the leg through his knee and ankle. He will begin rehab work next week with his knee and upper body.

No timeline for his return has been established. George didn't dismiss the possibility of returning later in the season or missing the entire year.

On visitors:

Teammate Roy Hibbert visited George in Las Vegas, bringing him gummy bears and a "silk, fur blanket to lay in." George also mentioned Floyd Mayweather, LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade as being among the visitors.

Number change:

George said he first considered wearing No. 13 as a rookie but was superstitious and wouldn't change from 24, which he's always worn. He applied to change two years ago but another player picked 13.

"At that stage where I'm ready to embrace everything that comes with being one of the young stars in the league. The whole thing is being able to enjoy the show and being fun to watch."

He had to by 600-700 pieces of apparel, per league rules, to change his number.